Sanskrit Drama

Sanskrit Poetry

Sanskrit Poets

Meer Taqi Meer

Mohammed Taqi (b. 1723 - d. 1810), better known by his takhallus of Mir Taqi Mir (sometimes also spelled as Meer Taqi Meer), was the leading Urdu poet of the eighteenth century, and one of the pioneers who gave shape to the Urdu language itself. He was one of the principal poets of the Delhi school of the Urdu ghazal and remains arguably the foremost name in Urdu poetry.
He was born in Agra, India (called "Akbarabad" at the time), which at the time was ruled by the Mughals, in 1723. He left for Delhi, at the age of 11, following his father's death. His philosophy of life was formed primarily from his father, whose emphasis on the importance of love and the value of compassion remained with him through his life and imbued his poetry. At Delhi, he finished his education and joined a group of nobility as a courtier-poet. He lived much of his life in Mughal Delhi. However, after Ahmad Shah Abdali's sack of Delhi each year starting 1748, he eventually moved to the court of Asaf-ud-Daulah in Lucknow, at the king's invitation. Distressed to witness the plundering of his beloved Delhi, he gave vent to his feelings through some of his couplets. He remained in Lucknow for the remainder of his life.